How to Find a Good Apartment in Ukraine

Whenever you plan a trip, you definitely spend a lot of time looking for a good accommodation. By “good” I mean comfortable, for a reasonable price, in a suitable location, with all the needed services provided. Mostly tourists choose hotels since it is easy to book them and one can read many reviews before making the final choice. For the past 10 years Ukraine started to attract more and more foreign visitors and besides hotels, apartments became available as an option for you to stay.

So which one to prefer: hotel or apartment?

Let’s see pros and cons of the later.

+Save money. Usually apartments are cheaper than hotels and you get more for the money+ At-home environment. You are experiencing the same comfort as you would when you are staying at your own house+ More privacy. You don’t have to meet new people every day in the corridor or at the elevator and more than likely you are not going to be disturbed by noisy neighbours+ More space. You are not locked in one tiny room with a bed that occupies most of the space. You can enjoy facilities of full-size kitchen, living room, your own bathroom and if you are lucky, a balcony.+ Fully equipped kitchen. You can cook whenever you want and what you want. If you slept in and would like a cup of coffee at noon, you can easily have it. On the other hand while staying in a hotel with breakfast included, you have to hurry up, because it is served only till certain time.+ Living like a local. You lose the feeling of being a guest and can enjoy life like locals do.+ Washing machine. If you came for a longer period, I am sure there will be a need to wash your clothe. You can do it absolutely free at the apartments at any time that is convenient for you.+ You can bring your pets. It is easier to find apartments that are pet-friendly and have all the necessary facilities than to look for a hotel with this special permission.+ Travel with your family. If you travel with several people, with no doubts it will be more comfortable to stay in apartments rather than rent two or more hotel rooms.

– Security deposit. In most cases you have to pay security deposit while renting an apartment.– Profound internet research. Finding right place usually involve more internet research as opposed to hotel searching.
– Housekeeping facilities. Not all the apartments come with housekeeping facilities. If they do, usually it is once a week, not every day. So do not expect to have new sheets and towels every morning.– No room service or restaurant. If you decided to get lazy, there will be nobody to call for a cup of tea or chilled bottle of champaign– Safety net. Apartments do not have security personnel.– Parking. Not always parking area is available near your apartment.

What are the average prices for apartments in big cities?

Should you stay in Kiev, expect to pay 35-50$ for a one bedroom apartment
If you decided to visit Lviv, 20-43$ will be the average price for the same one bedroom apartment.
If you go to Odessa, be prepared to pay 30-50$ for a one bedroom apartment.

Where to book?

oneday.ua – this site is available in English. It offers apartments for rent by owners. You can search by city and district within city. It has different filters that you can apply. There is a map available to see the exact location. Prices vary between 6 Euro to 30 Euro per one bedroom apartment. Site provides couple photos with the description of what apartment has. Also there is a phone contact of the owner listed there. Not all of the apartments are possible to book online. And there are no reviews to read.

AirBnb – It is a website for people to rent out lodging. It has over 1,000,000 listings in 34,000 cities and 190 countries. Users of the site must register and create a personal online profile before using the site. Every property is associated with a host whose profile includes recommendations by other users, reviews by previous guests, as well as a response rating and private messaging system. (Wikipedia).Travellers can refine their search by different categories, such as host language (sign language included), various keywords (with the sea view) etc. You can contact your host by using online form. One of the dropbacks is that you have to pay a guest service fee of 6-12% on top of the reservation to cover services such as customer support and the Host Guarantee.

Dobovo.com – It has friendly-user design of the site, available in English. Offers competitive prices ( if you find a cheaper price for the same apartment, they will rent it to you for the lesser price). Very fast booking ( up to 3 minutes). Has online chat available where you can ask all the necessary questions. Pictures, maps and reviews are at your hand.

Doba.ua – Ukrainian only, but it offers good prices. Almost no reviews. But all the necessary information is there along with photos, maps and contacts.

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